


Modern Love

by nickyz



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Emotional Baggage, Friends to Lovers, Light Angst, M/M, Mutual Pining, Past Character Death, Post-Canon, it's after duel monsters but pretend DSOD just doesn't happen, kind of slow burn, they both still miss atem a lot and refuse to admit it, yugi gets in a fight and theres blood so that's why the rating is what it is
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-30
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:20:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22039204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nickyz/pseuds/nickyz
Summary: yugi visits kaiba when he's absent from school with a cold, intending to cheer him up.things kind of spiral way out of control after that.
Relationships: Kaiba Seto/Mutou Yuugi
Comments: 7
Kudos: 68





	1. Chapter 1

At the end of the school day, Yugi failed to hide his unsettled expression. Unfortunately for him, even the smallest sign of discomfort could be sniffed out like a bloodhound by Jounouchi Katsuya.

“ _Yugi!_ ”  
  
Yugi jumped with a loud yelp, but even with that jump, his height didn’t allow him to clear over the group’s heads. He hadn’t grown more than an inch or two since he was a first-year student. He flushed in embarrassment, pouting at his friend. “Jounouchi! You scared me!”

“I wouldn’t have scared you if you weren’t so out of it!” Jounouchi leaned down to his friend’s height to look him deep in the eyes, walking backwards now. Honda grumbled as he wordlessly started pushing Jounouchi’s bike for him. “Don’t try to hide from me! I can tell something’s wrong. Is someone picking on you?”

In front of them, Honda cracked his knuckles, making the purple-haired girl beside him giggle. “We’ll mess them up if they are!” There was another giggle, presumably in reaction to the glare Anzu gave the two boys, which Yugi couldn’t see from his current angle. He only saw her head whip towards them.

“No, no! Nothing like that.” He didn’t add that he really hadn’t been picked on since the Pharaoh started hanging around. Had life-or-death encounters with several people, yes, but he didn’t really think that counted as ‘bullying’. That was just attempted murder. Those kinds of people suddenly stopped showing up once his other self was gone, though… seems like he was a bit of a bad luck charm. Or maybe it was a destiny thing. Yugi shook his head. “You don’t have to worry about me.” 

“Like hell I don’t!” Jounouchi huffed, turning back around to walk normally. “Every time you say that, I find you unconscious and bleeding.” 

“Not _every_ time.”  
  
“Most of the time!!” 

“Okay, fine, you’re right.” Yugi frowned, kicking a pebble in their path. It bounced in front of Honda, who gave it a much stronger kick, sending it hurtling into the park beside them. They all faintly heard someone start complaining, and Honda shrunk down nervously. All of them walked a little faster. “It’s just that I didn’t… see Kaiba today.” Yugi continued as if he wasn’t interrupted. 

Jounouchi scoffed. “Who _wants_ to see Kaiba? Just looking at him is enough to put me in a bad mood.” 

“He _is_ a little bit of a sourpuss…” Miho pursed her lips, looking up from her phone screen. Clearly she wasn’t entirely aware of the conversation going on, as her words were hesitant.

“Even Miho gets it!” Jounouchi gestured wildly to the girl, making her blink owlishly. “Kaiba is like a bad omen.” 

“I know you guys don’t like Kaiba, I don’t like him that much either, but I’m still worried!” Yugi felt his voice raise in involuntary defense. When had it stopped cracking? “He’s never absent, I always pass him in the exact same spot! Every day! Like clockwork!” He tapped his fingers against the straps of his backpack where they had started holding on tighter as he exposed his anxieties. “What if he’s ill?”  
  
“Who _cares_ if he’s ill?” Jounouchi drawled, throwing his head back. Yugi frowned harder, and Jounouchi’s head shot back up in a dirty blonde blur when Anzu slapped it sharply. “Ow!”  
  
“ _Don’t be rude!_ ” She closed her eyes in frustration, putting a hand on Yugi’s shoulder. “Yugi is a lot nicer than you two! Of course he’d fret about Kaiba’s health. Don’t make fun of him for it!” 

“Wasn’t making fun of him.” Jounouchi grumbled back, but Anzu cut him off.

“You could always go and check on him, Yugi. I don’t know if he’d _appreciate_ it, but… it’d give you peace of mind, right?” She gave him a big smile, and it was contagious. He couldn’t help but smile back.

“No, Jounouchi might be right. I should wait to see if he shows up tomorrow. Maybe today was just a fluke.” 

“If you’re sure, Yugi.” Anzu released his shoulder and stopped walking, standing at the corner of the entrance to a cluster of buildings. “I’m stopping here today. I promised Bakura I’d get him some cold medicine, since he’s feeling under the weather.” She paused. “I bet you there’s a cold going around, and Kaiba was unlucky enough to get it!” Giving Yugi a wink, she turned and started down the sidewalk. “See you guys tomorrow!”

“Bye, Anzu!” 

“Later!”  
  
“Don’t get caught up at the mall!”

“Stay safe!”

Anzu stuck her tongue out at Jounouchi’s comment about the mall.

* * *

Day two. Yugi’s worry was growing stronger, and he could hardly focus in his classes now. As soon as he passed that spot in the stairwell at the usual time he’d catch a glimpse of Kaiba, and the billionaire was nowhere to be seen, he felt his stomach drop to the floor. There was no way Kaiba would allow himself to be absent for two days in a row, even if he hated school as much as everyone else. He had a reputation to uphold. Yugi absent-mindedly tapped the tip of his pencil against his notebook, not noticing when he pressed too hard and broke it.

He felt a sharp tap on his shoulder suddenly, and turned to see Bakura- he was the closest to Yugi in this class. Bakura pointed a thumb behind him, towards the front of the room. Anzu had signalled him to get Yugi’s attention. She mouthed a question, “are you okay?”, and he shot her a thumbs up. She clearly didn’t buy it, but left him alone regardless. She was correct not to believe him, because Yugi hadn’t even managed to convince himself with a response like that. That’s why he’d decided earlier that if Kaiba didn't show up a third time, he'd pay the mansion a visit. _Just_ to make sure things were okay. That’s all.  
  


* * *

  
With the carved stone eyes of a Blue-Eyes White Dragon staring him in the face, it was then Yugi realized it was far too late to have second thoughts about this. His palms began to sweat and he desperately tried not to lose his grip on the already wet bag in his hands- as mother nature had decided this was the perfect time for a downpour. Unsure if he should ring or knock, he settled for a knock, lifting up the fancy metal hook and slamming it back down on the wood a few times. The door opened almost instantly, the face of Kaiba's butler- Isono, Yugi recalled- staring down at him.

"We are not expecting any visitors at the moment. I apologize." Isono tried to quickly slam the door in the teenager's soaked face, as there's less time to feel bad about doing so if you do it fast, but a voice inside stopped him. It was too pitchy to be Kaiba's… so it was definitely Mokuba. Yugi craned his neck through the gap in the large door, waving awkwardly.

"Yugi!" Mokuba exclaimed, pushing Isono to the side and dragging the other out of the rain. "Sorry about Isono, he's one of our best butlers for a reason." He gave the much older man a wink, to reassure him he wasn't in trouble or anything. Yugi almost felt bad as Isono visibly relaxed with a sigh. "Anyways… what brings you here?" Mokuba rocked on his feet, glancing at Yugi's bag a few times.

"Well, Kaiba's been absent from school since Monday, and-"

"You're worried about him." Mokuba's grin was a stark contrast to Kaiba's smirk, but carried the same feeling of being cornered.

"I wouldn't say _worried,_ " Yugi tried to laugh it off, hand going up to scratch at the back of his head. "More… concerned? For his well-being. How's that sound?"

"Less pathetic, definitely." Mokuba teased, stepping back to finally give Yugi some space. The two brothers really weren't that different, Mokuba was just more playful. "I can't say he'd be _thrilled_ with your company, but I won't stop you." He gave Yugi an eyebrow raise, and their exchange morphed into something more, both knowing yet not outright saying what the other was thinking. 

"I figured." Yugi found it easy to keep up his smile, giddy over the verbal trap card he was about to play. "I totally understand if he only wants to duel with the _other_ me and not the _real deal_." Yugi made sure to exaggerate his words, and speak louder. Mokuba snickered under his breath, instantly holding up three fingers. Yugi watched them. Three, then two, and finally one…

"Yugi!"

Yugi did not jump in surprise at the harsher voice of Mokuba's older brother. The countdown had prepared him for it. "Hey, Kaiba!" Yugi trotted over to him gleefully, noticing little things out of place- messier hair and wrinkled pajamas, paler skin and more bags under his eyes. It was weird seeing Kaiba be anything less than perfect, appearance-wise. "Are you feeling alright?"

Kaiba scoffed. "Of course I am."

"You haven't been at school for a few days now…" Yugi prodded, swinging the bag at his hip to and fro.

"Big bro caught a cold!" Mokuba called out from where Isono was trying to get him to keep his mouth shut, to no avail. Yugi watched the bridge of Kaiba's nose crinkle, signaling a furrowing of his brows obscured by his low hanging bangs. 

"Maybe I did," Kaiba strained to stay calm in the face of something he considered humiliating. He knew his brother had no ill intentions, and was just teasing, as brothers often do. "But I am still as sharp as ever. If you're issuing a challenge, Yugi, I will not back down!" He pointed at the much smaller boy in a dramatic fashion… only to burst into a fit of coughing. 

"Kaiba, I don't think that's-"

Kaiba cut him off, eyes watering as he tried not to cough through his sentence. "I have no bad ideas, Yugi!" 

Yugi pursed his lips. "I wouldn't feel right dueling you like… _this,_ " he gestured vaguely to Kaiba with the hand not currently occupied. "I wanna beat you at your full potential. Isn't that what _you_ want?" Back at it with another surprise trap card, and Yugi was honestly having a very fun time. Mokuba gave him a thumbs up.

Kaiba frowned, eyes searching the floor. Then he let out a frustrated sigh, crossing his arms. "Fine. You win this one, Yugi. I will duel you only when I am well again." Yugi smiled up at Kaiba, receiving only a glare in return. "If you are not here to duel, then what _are_ you here for?"

* * *

"Jeez, you're really good at this, Kaiba…" Yugi commented, biting his nail in concentration. The two were currently deep into a game of chess, with Kaiba having stolen the lead. Plus most of Yugi's pieces on the board. 

"Of course I am," Kaiba brushed off the compliment. "I'm good at everything." 

"Maybe." Yugi blindly moved another piece. Truthfully, he hadn't played chess in a _long_ time- he was only choosing games he was bad at or inexperienced with in an attempt to cheer Kaiba up a little. Yugi felt like he really needed it, as much as he said he didn't. Kaiba smirked at the amateur move, then knocked the piece over triumphantly. It was a good thing Kaiba still underestimated Yugi, or he might find the losses suspicious.

"Checkmate, Yugi."

"Not _again_!"

He tried to feign sorrow in losing, only to fail and burst out laughing. Kaiba gave him a perplexed look, but whatever he was going to say was interrupted by the bedroom door being slammed open.

"Hey!" Mokuba greeted, riding on the back of a food tray like one would ride a shopping cart. "I made you some soup!" 

"You mean the cooks did?" Kaiba corrected in a bored fashion, not sparing the cart a second glance. Mokuba shook his head excitedly, practically beaming.

"I had them help me a little, but _I_ made this! For you!" He pushed the cart closer to Kaiba, turning on his puppy-dog eyes. Kaiba wouldn't have said no anyways, so that method was completely unnecessary. Kaiba gracefully picked up the bowl of soup, and it honestly didn't look or smell too bad. 

"Thank you, Mokuba." Yugi felt his heart skip a beat as he watched Kaiba smile lightly, embracing Mokuba in a one-armed side hug. He turned away at that, slightly flushed. Somehow he felt like he was intruding on a very private moment, something he didn't have the right to see. At least not with his current status as Kaiba’s rival. This reaction did not go unnoticed by Kaiba.

"I think it's about time I got going," Yugi said in a rush, sliding out of the large chair that had been scooched next to Kaiba's even larger bed. Everything was big in a mansion, Yugi supposed. "I've taken up a lot of your time today already." 

"Aw, Yugi, you know we don't think of you like that!" Mokuba pouted. Yugi patted him on the head, starting for the door anyways.

"I know! I just think your brother needs a break from me, for now. I'm sure he'd appreciate it." He tried to give Kaiba a joking smirk, but the look the other was giving him… Yugi couldn't read it at all. He swallowed hard, and accidentally bumped into the food cart as his eyes unfocused. The crinkling noise his bag made from the impact reminded him of why he brought it in the first place. "Ah! I almost forgot!"

The siblings watched incredulously as Yugi wrestled out a decently sized Blue-Eyes White Dragon plushie, which looked like it could be comfortably held in one’s arms. "I've had this sitting in my room for a while… I saw it in the store one day on my way home and just felt like I should buy it." He set the toy down nervously on the end of Kaiba's pristine bed. "Sorry it took so long for me to give it to you, you probably already have it by now…" Yugi chuckled, resuming his walk to the door. "Bye!" He waved to the two, unwilling to turn around and face Kaiba's unreadable face again.

"See you, Yugi!"

Kaiba said nothing.

* * *

"Um, Yugi? Someone's looking for you in the shop!" 

Yugi was jarred out of working on his weekend assignment by the call of his grandpa. He almost instinctively called back "tell them I'm busy!," but paused just in time to realize his grandpa hadn't said Yugi's _friends_ were looking for him. Just 'someone.' "On my way!" He opted to say instead, heading down from his room as fast as he could with house slippers that were a size too big on his feet. His grandpa had insisted Yugi would grow into them. He never did.

“Hi! What’s-” Yugi tried to say hello as he entered, put paused. There was a familiar shock of black hair standing there looking vaguely in his direction, rather anxiously. “...Mokuba?”

Mokuba snapped out of whatever he was thinking about, hurtling into Yugi so fast it almost knocked both of them to the floor. Yugi’s grandpa just laughed, figuring they had become friends or something, but Yugi knew the situation a little differently. He placed a hand on Mokuba’s shoulder to push him back.

“Is everything alright?”

“Yes! Yes and no!” Mokuba shoved his hands into one of the pockets on his cargo pants, which had plenty of them to spare. He pulled out three very familiar shiny foil packages, handing them to Yugi. Yugi spread them out in his hands, examining the packaging… then immediately tried to give them back. “No, those are for you!” Mokuba insisted, pushing back.

“ _I can’t take these!_ ” Yugi whisper-yelled, his heart ready to burst out of his chest. “These haven’t even been released to the public yet!”

“I know!” Mokuba grinned, shoving Yugi’s hands away and forcing him to keep holding the card packs. “KaibaCorp gets access to a bunch of Duel Monsters stuff before it’s released worldwide. I got those for you.”

“Why?!” Yugi ran a shaky hand through his multicolored hair. “Is this even legal?!” Mokuba shrugged unhelpfully, totally unbothered.

“If it is, we’ve got plenty of lawyers. Anyways!!” Mokuba pulled Yugi’s face down by his collar so they were eye-level. “I _really_ need to talk to you…” The child seemed to consider the public setting, though, and released Yugi. “Come with me to the limo.”

* * *

Despite his previous hesitance to accept Mokuba’s gift, he tried his very best not to look _too_ eager as he tore open the packs, body rocking with the steady movement of the limousine. Mokuba drummed his fingers against his thighs, waiting for Yugi to finish geeking out- which Yugi did with a blush of embarrassment, setting the gift down on his lap. “So,” He coughed into his hand to absorb his shame. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s not really that anything’s _wrong,_ ” Mokuba brought a finger up to his mouth and began to worry on the skin of his fingertip. “But something is definitely off.”

“Off how?”

“Seto _smiled._ ” Mokuba breathed, as if saying those words was like lifting a fifty-pound weight off of his shoulders. Yugi, however, didn’t quite understand what the problem was.

“I mean… yeah, that is unusual, but I saw him smile at you while I was visiting?”

Mokuba clenched his fingers into his loose pant leg. “Not like that. A real one, a happy one.” His gray-blue eyes snapped up to Yugi’s plum ones, boring holes through his skull. “All because of you.”

“ _Me?_ ” Yugi laughed as realistically as he could, suddenly on edge. “Kaiba _hates_ me. I think I’m the last person that would make him smile, Mokuba.”

“That stuffed animal you gave him- the Blue-Eyes one.” Mokuba talked over the last half of Yugi’s sentence like the teen hadn’t spoken at all. “He’s been sleeping with it every night since then, and last night, I saw him _smile_ in his sleep.” 

“...I don’t understand.” Yugi frowned. “Why is he so happy over a store-bought plushie? Surely he has the money to buy whatever he wants, whenever he wants.”

“That’s just it!” Mokuba pointed at him with a chewed finger. “He _can_ buy whatever he wants, but it’s just not the same.” He slid back into the soft leather of the seat, crossing his arms and directing his gaze out of the tinted window next to him. “When… when Seto and I had to go to the orphanage, we couldn’t take a lot of stuff with us.”

“Mokuba…” Yugi placed a hand softly on Mokuba’s shoulder again, to express that the boy didn’t have to talk about this, only to have it shaken off. Mokuba _wanted_ to tell Yugi about his past.

“Seto used most of our bags to carry my things, hardly grabbing anything of his own. I think he realized, unlike me, that a lot of that stuff just wouldn’t last.” He rubbed stubbornly at a moist eye. “By the time we got out, even I had barely anything left. Seto had absolutely nothing, not one personal possession except the clothes on his back… but even then, I don't think he saw them as his own.”

Yugi tried to look thoughtful, but the direction this was turning made him uneasy. It felt invasive for Yugi to hear such personal things about Kaiba’s childhood without Kaiba himself present… he’d had no idea just how bad it was. “I still don’t understand.”

“Seto still doesn’t like having a lot of personal items. Right now, I think he just cares about his blue-eyes cards, and the gifts I’ve given him since Death-T.” Mokuba grasped the card-shaped necklace resting on his chest, letting out a shaky sigh. “He’s totally prepared to lose everything else, if it ever came down to it. That’s why he’s so attached to Blue-Eyes… it’s one of the few things he cares about preserving besides me.”

“I… I’m sorry, Mokuba.” Yugi closed his eyes in shame. “I’ve been so mean to Kaiba-”

“Oh, no. He deserved all that. He was an asshole and still kind of is.” Yugi gaped at him, but Mokuba waved it off. “What I’m saying is- you gave him something that he _cares_ for. Something he’d be devastated to lose.” He looked almost jealous, just for the briefest of moments. He shook his head. “No one’s ever pulled that off. You did something I thought was impossible-” Mokuba suddenly stopped to sniff loudly. “You made him smile again. _Really_ smile.” He swiped his long sleeve over his face, then fumbled for his necklace again. He clicked open the locket, lifting it up to show Yugi what was inside. Yugi felt a wash of sorrow, seeing the young face of Kaiba smile. It didn’t even look like the same person.

“That’s Kaiba?” Yugi cradled the metal card gently, knowing this was an extremely important piece of jewelry. He ran a thumb around the rim.

“That’s the last time I saw him smile, until last night.” Mokuba let himself cry now, knowing that Yugi was the last person who would judge him for it. “Do you understand now?”

He took one last long look at the old photo of Kaiba before he closed the locket and handed it back. “I do.”


	2. Chapter 2

Kaiba was suspicious when Yugi and Mokuba walked into the mansion hand-in-hand, with Mokuba sporting a blotchy red face that he’d clearly been rubbing at. All he’d told his older brother was that he’d invited Yugi over for dinner to repay him for visiting last week, and Kaiba accepted that. Sort of. Enough for him to drop the topic.

“Sooo.” Yugi was shuffling through the cards Mokuba had given him, calculating how good his haul was. Kaiba looked at Mokuba with a raised eyebrow, gesturing to the clearly not yet publicly released card packs, and Mokuba just winked. “What are we having?”

“Anything you want!” Mokuba took off his bandana and draped it over the back of his much too tall chair, not wanting to get anything on it. “Just let me or big bro know, and the servants’ll make it for you.”

Yugi self-consciously looked over his shoulder to see a butler standing nearby, probably waiting for their orders… he tried not to feel bad, as the man was just doing his job, right? “Just a, uh… a burger would be fine with me.” He heard a pen scribbling behind him, and shrunk down a bit in his seat. Across the long table, Kaiba smirked.

“I’ll have spaghetti, and Seto wants the usual!” Mokuba piped up, setting a napkin on his lap. The butler nodded, then bowed courteously, heading into the kitchen to speak to the chefs. Distracted from his cards by his awkward feeling, Yugi suddenly realized how cold it was in the KaibaCorp mansion… he hadn’t had time to put on a coat of any kind over his tank top, which he thought was okay since it wasn’t winter or anything. Clearly, though, the Kaiba family enjoyed a very, very cold house. Maybe it’s because they covered up so heavily all the time anyways, Yugi noted Kaiba’s long-sleeved turtleneck and Mokuba’s pullover. He couldn’t help but rub at his bare arms a bit, trying to warm them up.

“Are you cold?” It was the first thing Kaiba had said to Yugi this whole time, and it made him look up sharply.

“Oh! Um, I guess so. It’s fine, though! My fault for not thinking to grab a hoodie when I was leaving.” His eyes closed as he smiled, and he crossed his arms and leaned forward onto the table with his elbows so he could heat them up less obviously. 

“Hmph.” There was the sound of a chair being pushed out, and then the sound of heels. Yugi opened an eye, which landed on Kaiba’s now-empty spot. He tried to turn to look for where Kaiba had gone, but his vision was abruptly obscured by darkness. He gasped, and clawed off what was just dropped on his head- Kaiba’s white jacket. He got his eyesight back just in time to see Kaiba sitting down, and realized with a skip of his heart that Kaiba had draped the jacket over him.

“Th… Thank you, Kaiba.” Yugi blinked like a deer in the headlights, totally stunned. Kaiba didn’t answer, and Mokuba bounced giddily in his seat, like he had some kind of plan that none of them knew about and it was unfolding perfectly. Yugi would’ve questioned him, but…

“The food shouldn’t take too long,” Mokuba commented as if trying to make conversation, and Yugi barely heard him. He was too focused on how he was now enveloped in Kaiba’s… scent? One would think he had none, as clipped and clean as his appearance usually was, but he _did._ It was suffocating. Yugi didn’t know how to describe it, it was crisp like cold autumn air but also warm and comforting. It had his brain turning into mush. 

He must have zoned out, because one minute he was thinking about how much he wanted to shove his face into the dark red fabric of the jacket’s insides and _inhale_ , and the next he was having a plate of food set in front of him. The heat of it blasted his already toasty face.

“You okay over there, Yugi? You’ve been staring into space the past fifteen minutes.” Mokuba talked with his mouth full of still-steaming spaghetti, much to Kaiba’s visual disdain. The extended table the three were sitting at suddenly seemed even longer to Yugi’s muddled mind, and he shook himself roughly.

“Yes! Yes, I’m fine.” He was trying hard not to smell Kaiba’s jacket, which was somehow not cancelled out by the smell of the delicious-looking burger awaiting him. The chefs added a side of fries on their own accord too, which Yugi’s stomach much appreciated. He dug in a lot less elegantly than Kaiba, who was precise in cutting his beef fillet, but more civilized than Mokuba. His manners deemed that good enough, because he didn’t think _anyone_ could eat a hamburger neatly.

* * *

Yugi had left the KaibaCorp mansion with a smile on his face, food in his belly, but a heavy feeling in his heart. He had no clue how to react to the things he’d started feeling at dinner, he’d never felt them before. Except _maybe_ around Jounouchi, but those went away when they developed a more brother-like connection. He hadn’t thought about it since.

Here Yugi was, 17, almost 18 years old, questioning his orientation! He knew what a crush felt like, he’d had enough to know, so he couldn’t just pretend that he _didn’t_ have one. The hard part about having one this particular time was that it was involving a man. Which never happened. Again, except Jounouchi, but that doesn’t count anymore! Does it? He certainly doesn’t like Jounouchi in that way now… 

Yugi wasn’t able to finish his weekend homework. Nor was he able to get a significant amount of sleep that night.

* * *

Showing up to school with less than an hour of sleep under his belt wasn’t a new experience for Yugi, but it also wasn’t a pleasant one. He could function just barely, and people noticed. Honda had to stop his head from hitting the table during lunch, and he’d walked into a wall during his shift to another class. Three times. A bruise was starting to blossom on his forehead at this point, but he didn’t really feel it.

He staggered behind the crowd during the next class switch, missing the second bell, which actually turned out to be a _good_ thing. As he rounded the corner at the bottom of the stairwell, he saw two girls pinning another girl where Yugi _knew_ there were no cameras that could see them. That was an instant red flag. The victim looked like a first-year, while the bullies looked like second-years. Even so, Yugi was about level in height with them, so he didn’t have intimidation on his side. They were berating the younger girl about some boy, but Yugi didn’t plan on waiting around to listen.

“Hey!” He barked, squaring his shoulders. He definitely wouldn’t fight a girl, but he could tell them off. “Let her go!” He pointed to the trapped girl, who looked at him hopefully with sad eyes and a bruised cheek. It looked like she’d been slapped pretty hard.

“What if we don’t wanna, tough guy? You’ll _make_ us?” The more bold girl laughed right in his face, her companion mirroring her like a parrot. The ‘parrot’ then snuck off and peeked through the window on the exit to the stairs. Yugi was unable to see this, as his back was facing that direction. “You wouldn’t hit a girl!” 

She was right, but he wouldn’t back down. “No, I wouldn’t, but I’m still not gonna let you push her around! It’s wrong! And-”

The girls giggled devilishly, one giggle coming from behind him. Yugi felt his heart stop.

He was being lifted from the ground by his jacket collar, by someone who was obviously much taller. Damn, he should’ve known better than to stand with his back to the door! Breaking out in a cold sweat, he turned around, to see the face of a boy he was unfamiliar with. He must be a second-year, too. He looked angry.

“This isn’t any of your business, you goth weirdo.” The boy glared at him, tightening his fist. “Get lost.” He dropped Yugi on the ground, who wasn’t able to land on his feet because his legs were shaking too much. Yugi then received a harsh kick that sent him sprawling to the ground with a gasp when he opened his mouth to respond.

For the first time in his life, Yugi felt an _itch_. An itch he couldn’t control, one he’d only felt whenever he stopped Atem from doing something violent. He blinked and he went from staring at cold white tile to twisting his fist into his assaulter’s stomach. He didn’t have a lot of muscle, but he hit with enough force to at least startle the boy. 

“ _Brave,_ aren’t you, shrimp?” The boy hissed at him, and at this point the group of girls had broken up, afraid of being caught in the scuffle. Yugi took a step back, his chest pounding in his ears so hard he thought it might explode and drench them both in blood. None of his friends were on this side of the school at this time of day, he knew that for sure- Jounouchi wouldn’t be able to save him today. Bracing for impact, Yugi closed his eyes without thinking, hoping for just a moment that Jounouchi would defy logic run in and stop the incoming punch anyways. He felt the bridge of his nose snap.

He screamed in agony, clutching his now-gushing nose, and the boy who punched him recoiled. Yugi suspected he hadn’t meant to punch as hard as he did, and was also probably frightened by just how much blood was pouring out. He couldn’t really focus on anything other than his nose right now, though, and fell to his knees, tears beginning to prick at the corners of his eyes. He didn’t even care when seconds later the boy was unconscious next to him on the ground, and someone was lifting his hands away from his face.

Blue eyes looked into his, searching.

“...Kaiba?” Yugi breathed out in disbelief. He’d totally forgotten… he always passed Kaiba in this spot, but he had been so far behind their usual time of crossing that he figured he’d just missed his rival! Apparently he hadn’t?

“Is it broken?” Kaiba brought a slim, pale finger up to Yugi’s face and touched his wound. Yugi flinched hard. “It’s broken.”

“Kaiba, wh- what’re you doin’ here? You should be in- in class…” Yugi noted that he sounded a bit funny, like he was holding his nose. Kaiba was unphased by it, lifting Yugi to his feet. He picked up Yugi’s bag that had slid off his shoulders during the fight, and slung it over his own. 

“I didn’t see you pass me.” Was all Kaiba responded with, picking up his briefcasecase that he’d used to knock the bully out- god, what did he have in there that was so _solid_?- and began leading Yugi on the familiar path to the nurse. He’d been a frequent visitor there as a first-year, so the directions were practically etched into his memory.

“I can get there by m’self, y’kno…” Yugi mumbled, but he leaned against Kaiba’s larger form anyways. He was tired, especially now that his adrenaline boost was wearing off.

“Sure you can,” Kaiba snarked right back. “I suppose you can beat me in a duel right now, too.”

“...You never know.” Yugi pouted, feeling like his face was on fire. His nose must have a pretty bad breakage if he’s starting to feel swollen and choked already… he breathed in Kaiba’s smell through his mouth instead, tasting iron.

* * *

“Stop squirming.” Kaiba ordered Yugi sternly, attempting to wrap up Yugi’s nose himself. The nurse had insisted on Yugi going to the hospital, and had almost called an ambulance, when Kaiba said he’d just take him himself. That was a lie, of course. Yugi did _not_ want to go to the hospital, it wasn’t one of his favorite things to do, so their compromise was using the trained doctors at KaibaCorp. 

“But it hurts,” Yugi whined, no longer crying as he’d run out of tears by now.

“No shit.” Kaiba relented his death grip on Yugi’s cheek, turning back to face the seat in front of him and crossing his arms. Yugi guessed he must be done now, and gingerly brought a hand to his nose.

“Don’t touch it.” Kaiba slapped his hand back down into his lap, which was kind of covered in blood from his massive nosebleed. Yugi finally noticed, with an extreme amount of guilt, that there was red on Kaiba’s uniform too.

“I’m really sorry I bled on you.” He stuck his hand in his pockets, which was fine since all the blood on his hands was dry by now, looking for something he could use to try and get the stains out. He was sure he usually carried disinfectant wipes, so he was always prepared to clean up a bloody cheek.

“Why were you involved in a fight?” Kaiba narrowed his eyes, and Yugi paused.

“...They were picking on a first-year girl and he showed up out of nowhere.” He took his hands out of his pockets and clasped them together.

“You hit him.” The inflection in Kaiba’s voice told Yugi he meant something more like _“You never fight back.”_

“...I know.” Yugi sighed, running both hands through his knotted hair. “I don’t know why I did that, I was just so frustrated.”

Next to him, uncomfortably close, Kaiba chuckled. Yugi could feel the movement of his body as he did so. “The Pharaoh taught you some new tricks.”

 _Both_ of them tensed up at the mention of the now-departed ‘other Yugi,’ even though Kaiba was the one to mention him. Yugi let out a sharp breath, now acutely aware of the empty space in his heart and mind that Atem left behind. The silence in his head was deafening, even though he was sure his ears were starting to ring. He hadn’t thought about Atem in weeks, save for during the fight with the bully.

“Y… Yeah. He did.”

Kaiba turned his head away, his bangs falling just enough to shadow his eyes completely. Yugi didn’t look at him anyways, preoccupied with clutching the empty spot where the Millennium Puzzle used to hang heavily from his neck. He’d unintentionally started to breathe heavily.

A cold hand was placed on top of his own, which was close to ripping holes in his stained uniform shirt. Long, boney fingers pried Yugi’s smaller, fatter fingers out of the fabric, and without even thinking, Yugi laced those fingers with his own like he used to do with his other self. They were just as cold, but more corporeal. Yugi felt the hand start to shake, unsure if the shaking was his own or not, and Kaiba still stubbornly faced the window of the limousine. 

Only when it was time to leave the car did their hands finally break apart.

* * *

They didn’t say a word to each other as they went inside. Yugi needed medical attention, _proper_ medical attention. Kaiba had a fair amount of experience from patching Mokuba up when they were children, but that wasn’t enough experience to qualify him for setting a shattered nose. KaibaCorp’s main doctor was surprisingly kind, and Yugi figured it must be because Kaiba wanted someone nice taking care of his brother. Every time he flinched, she soothed him and stopped her work until he reassured her that he was okay to keep going. It made the process a hell of a lot longer than a regular visit to the hospital, but it was worlds more pleasant.

Kaiba was waiting for him when he left the woman’s office, changed out of his bloody school clothing and into his regular black turtleneck and tight black pants. Yugi did his best to smile wide, as he often did that to show he was fine, but it jostled his nose uncomfortably. 

“Follow me.” Kaiba walked like a stiff piece of cardboard, not with the usual confident air of swagger Yugi was accustomed to. He was probably just as nervous as Yugi was, about their slowly changing dynamic. They were surely both deep in denial, or at least, Yugi knew _he_ was. Kaiba didn’t have a lot of emotional connections, so he might not even realize how he’s feeling. _If_ he was feeling anything for Yugi in the first place. Yugi wasn’t about to ask him if he was.

The walk back to the front door felt shorter than before. Yugi could see the beginnings of sunset as Kaiba pulled open the door for him. Still in his bloody clothes, as Kaiba realistically had none to give him, he tightened his hold on the shoulder strap of his bag and headed out quickly, knowing his grandpa must be worried sick. The two didn’t say goodbye. Yugi didn’t even wave. Still, the damage was done, and the holes in the puzzles of their hearts throbbed painfully as they were finally starting to be acknowledged.

* * *

Time passed a lot slower after that, in Yugi’s opinion. He went through the same motions as always, hung out with his friends regularly, tried to have a good time… but he just felt incomplete. He hadn’t had this feeling since the first few months after Atem left him alone, and when he awoke to find it finally gone one day, he thought that meant his grieving was over. Apparently it wasn’t.

He hadn’t seen Kaiba since he broke his nose, which was about a week ago, maybe? It was hard to tell the passage of days when you felt like you were floating in space eighty percent of the time. They still passed one another in the hallway, but they didn’t exchange a glance anymore. He _wished_ someone could take control for a while and leave him be in his soul room, so he could have some time to ground himself. Normal people didn’t really think like that, though...  
  
“I’m not really a normal person.” Yugi answered himself. Oh _no_ . He hadn’t done _that_ since back then, too. He slammed his head down on his desk, unfinished papers surrounding him like a sad crown. It was a mess of his own making but that didn’t mean he knew how to fix it! His bed beckoned him, tugged him towards its soft embrace and the idea of dreamless sleep. He pushed the papers away and stood up, feeling like a ragdoll.

Crushes weren’t supposed to be like this, he never had several sleepless nights over Anzu, he just thought she was pretty and charming. Was there a difference in circumstances here that was making it difficult? Kaiba was male, yes, but Yugi was accepting enough to know he wouldn’t be making himself exhausted over something simple like that. He changed into his pajamas without really registering that he was, until he was already laying down in them. He should really get some new ones, the blue and yellow star pattern was getting a bit old.

Yugi tried to close his eyes and fall asleep. It was taking a while, but that wasn’t anything to worry about- he wasn’t _that_ tired in the first place. He was gonna have to force it. He stared at his ceiling, mentally naming off what monster cards were in his Duel Monsters deck, then moved onto the traps and spells…

* * *

_Someone’s in my room._ Yugi jumped out of sleep with that horrifying thought shoved into his dreams like a knife, making his heart almost leap out of his mouth. His head shot towards the doorway of his bedroom, and he rubbed at his eyes in a panic, trying to get them to clear so he could see. How did he even know someone was in his room? He was _really_ deep in sleep, there’s no way his instincts tipped him off to it. 

The intruder was staring him down, holding something in its ghostly hands. Yugi’s eyes landed on that first. It looked a bit like a puzzle, a spherical one. It was missing a very large piece, though. He sought out the person’s face next, and slammed into the wall behind his headboard when he realized who it was. It was _Kaiba._ Only slightly younger than he was now, sporting his signature white jacket and metal wrist cuffs. 

“ _Kaiba_? Why are you at my house? How did you get inside?” Yugi whispered for the sake of his sleeping grandpa, but he honestly wanted to shout. He looked at his blinking clock for the time, and realized that the power must have flickered during the night. 

The not-Kaiba didn’t reply, but he did beckon Yugi and turn around, his long coat swishing behind him. When it would have collided with the doorframe, it instead went right through it. He didn’t move again, one blue eye looking back at Yugi. Waiting for him.

“...I don’t trust this,” Yugi said, but got up anyways. The closest ‘coat’ in reach right now was his school jacket, so he slung it over his shoulders, and slipped on his sneakers too. “Where are we going, weird Kaiba-thing?”

Not-Kaiba lead him down the stairs, and out of Kame Game. There was a sense of urgency in how the ghost moved, like it was eager to show Yugi their final destination. It cradled the round object gently in its hands, the missing piece sticking out like a sore thumb. Yugi had never seen the real Kaiba hold something with such delicacy, it felt too intimate. Yugi pointedly looked away from the object, but obediently followed not-Kaiba through the streets of Domino.

* * *

Kaiba was pulling another all-nighter. Mokuba had insisted that doing so wasn’t healthy, especially not two days in a row, which was now actually _three_ days in a row. Kaiba assured him each time that he was getting rest, just not a lot. Which was a white lie. His face was bathed in the artificial blue light of his computer, the only thing illuminating the otherwise pitch black room. It was probably extremely damaging to his eyes.

Said eyes scanned lines of code he couldn’t even comprehend anymore with his limited brain power, but he read them anyways, pretending to be busy. His fingers were numb from the cold of his office, he had turned the air conditioning up too high and didn’t feel like getting out of his seat to turn it back down.

 _Someone is here._ The unpleasant foreign thought was implanted in his head, and it made him whip around in his swivel chair. His eyes widened so much he felt like they were going to pop out of his skull. 

“ _Yugi?_ ” Kaiba held his breath, as he couldn’t tell which _Yugi_ it was. The darkness of his room was obscuring Yugi’s front half, and light was spilling in behind him. That’s funny, he didn’t remember leaving any lights on…

Yugi moved his arm in a ‘come here’ motion, his other hand holding a floating triangular object. It wasn’t the Millennium Puzzle, as the light catching it didn’t glint off of it like it would with gold. Kaiba stood from his seat in a daze, seeming to float on air as he crossed over to Yugi. The smile was too soft to be the other Yugi, Kaiba noted with a hard stab of disappointment. Additionally, though, his eyes were too vacant to be the original Yugi. So, who the hell was this?

“Who are you?” Kaiba asked, voice hoarse from low use. Yugi blinked, broadened his smile, then grabbed Kaiba’s wrist. Kaiba shivered at how cold the touch was, it was like ice. “You’re not Yugi…” 

Not-Yugi nodded, not releasing Kaiba. 

“Of course you aren’t. You’re far too bold.” 

Not-Yugi laughed, but no sound came out of his mouth. It was extremely unsettling. He tugged on Kaiba’s arm, actually _pulling_ him- Kaiba knew Yugi wasn’t strong enough to move him, let alone drag him. He wanted to yank his arm away, because how dare anyone just _touch_ him like that, but still… he was curious where this not-Yugi was taking him. He wasn’t a fond believer or indulger of the occult stuff Yugi often found himself involved in, but this felt different. Not-Yugi was still looking at him, and despite the blankness of his purple eyes, Kaiba could sense some sass. Not-Yugi knew he’d peaked Kaiba’s interest.

“Oh, you stop that.”

Not-Yugi stuck his tongue out at him.

* * *

Yugi was shivering by the time not-Kaiba stopped, and Yugi accidentally walked straight through him. He panicked, but thankfully he hadn’t… damaged not-Kaiba, or anything. “Sorry! I didn’t know we were stopping…” 

Light beamed down on him from behind, and he turned around, terrified not-Kaiba had stopped him in the middle of the road. Two Blue-Eyes White Dragon statues loomed over him, and their young master stood guarded between them. Not-Kaiba placed a freezing hand on Yugi’s back and pushed him forward, making the teen stumble. He should have _guessed_ an apparition of Kaiba would lead him here…

“Yugi?” Kaiba spoke up first for once, and Yugi walked closer to him, with not-Kaiba trailing behind. As he got nearer, the light from inside the mansion became less blinding, and Yugi took several rapid steps back at what he saw. Was that-? No, no it couldn’t be. Not-Kaiba stopped him from tripping and falling to the cement by placing his hand on Yugi’s lower back again.

“Is that…” Yugi trailed off, as the form clinging to Kaiba’s arm became easier for him to see. “ _Me_?”

“Don’t ask me what’s going on, because I don’t know. He won’t say anything to me.” Kaiba shot a side-glare to not-Yugi, who was rocking back and forth on his heels like a child. 

“Hah, your double has his mouth shut too, but I thought maybe that’s just ‘cause he’s copying you.” Yugi teased, stepping up the stone stairs to stand… well, not literally face-to-face, because Yugi was far too short, but metaphorically face-to-face with the real Kaiba. Not-Yugi let go, and trotted away behind them. Probably grouping up with not-Kaiba. “I think they want us to do something.” Yugi played with the collar of his pajama shirt.

“Which would be?” Kaiba tapped his foot impatiently, crossing his arms.

“I don’t know.” Yugi frowned. 

They had a momentary standoff, Yugi switching to fiddling with his jacket sleeve nervously and Kaiba glaring into the dark sky.

Kaiba broke the silence, gasping, and he stumbled. “Yugi-”

“Kaiba! What’s wrong?” Yugi reached out to grab Kaiba’s arm, only to have something shock his body like lightning when he did. Instead of pulling back, his grip tightened. His eyes were stuck wide open, and this allowed him to see not-Kaiba sticking his hand right into Kaiba’s torso, specifically the area where his heart would be. Kaiba wheezed.

“Wh- What are you doing to him?!” Yugi cried, trying to get not-Kaiba to remove his hand, but every time he touched Kaiba in a new spot he received the same lightning-like jolt. “Stop! You’re hurting him!” 

Not-Kaiba’s gaze hardened, and his arm strained. He had his fist squeezing something. Kaiba hunched over until his head was on Yugi’s shoulder, and Yugi held him, not knowing what else to do. “Yugi, we need to talk.” He blurted out like the words had been forced out. Not-Kaiba finally released what he was holding, and stepped back. He walked around them without making a sound, disappearing the same way not-Yugi had. Kaiba fell to his knees with a shudder and a shaky breath, long arms coming up to wrap around Yugi. “They want us to talk.”

“About what?” Yugi patted Kaiba’s back, helping him clear his choked airway. 

“You know what.” 

Yugi was drawing a blank… what could their weird ghost doubles want them to talk about? “I don’t.”

“You _do._ Think about how they led us here.”

Not-Yugi had held and pressed against Kaiba’s arm like a lover, and not-Kaiba had only touched Yugi on his lower back, much like a partner would… oh! _Oh._ Yugi said that out loud, and Kaiba sighed.

“Figured it out?”

* * *

Kaiba invited Yugi inside, preferring to not have this kind of conversation out in the cold night air. Yugi concurred. They passed through the large central room area of the mansion first, where Kaiba put his hands on his hips and sucked his teeth in distaste. Mokuba was curled up on the couch, a controller resting next to him, and a game paused on the television screen.

“I told him not to stay up late waiting for me.” Kaiba huffed and picked his younger brother up with ease. Mokuba’s locket dangled from his neck, and Yugi was reminded of his conversation with him in the limousine. His verbal filter malfunctioned.

“Hey, Kaiba?” Kaiba didn’t pause his movement, so Yugi had to follow him and talk at the same time. 

“Hmph.” Yugi took that as an invite to continue.

“Do you… ever regret forcing your way into the Kaiba family?” 

Kaiba stopped. Yugi did too. He knew Kaiba wanted to ask how Yugi knew about that, but Yugi was looking at Mokuba, and Kaiba was smart enough to put the pieces together. 

Kaiba gazed at his brother too, brushing some black hair out of his sleeping face. “Never.” 

No more words were spoken the rest of the way, Yugi stopping patiently as Kaiba entered Mokuba’s room. He watched Kaiba lay the boy down, then tuck him in, and whisper something Yugi couldn’t hear. Kaiba acted like it didn’t happen, so Yugi did as well.

“When you showed up tonight, I thought you were the Pharaoh.” Kaiba admitted to him as he opened the door to his office and turned on the lights, and Yugi busied himself with finding a place to sit. 

“Why?”  
  
“Your jacket.” 

Yugi didn’t even realize that he’d copied the way Atem used to drape their jacket over his shoulders. “Oh. I guess that must have been disappointing.” He slid the article off and held it in his lap, sitting on the black leather couch in front of Kaiba’s desk. Kaiba didn’t answer him. He leaned over his desk, where his chair was still spun around to face the door, and turned off the computer screens. To Yugi’s surprise, Kaiba decided to join him on the couch. “Don’t you want to sit at your desk?”

“It’s a bit far away. I would rather not shout at this hour.” Kaiba crossed one leg over the other, then crossed his arms. 

“Right… well, where should I start…” Yugi played with one of his blonde bangs, curling it around his finger like some kind of love-struck middle school girl. Kaiba cleared his throat and gestured vaguely to the air, searching for words.

“What did Mokuba tell you?” He settled on, dropping his hand back down. Yugi opened his mouth, about to admit that he knew most of Kaiba’s tragic past… but paused. There was a more important part to that conversation than backstory.

“That my gift made you smile.” 

Kaiba got more tense than he already was, huffing out a breath. “I can’t lie, can I?”

“Not if we’re going to talk properly.”

Frowning, Kaiba lowered his head. He was doing every movement possible to avoid showing Yugi his eyes. “I did… _enjoy_ your gift.”

“I’m glad you did.” Yugi flushed a little, his cheeks stretched in a grin he couldn’t control. He could see Kaiba’s mouth wobbling traitorously, and his cheeks starting to become tinted as well. God, they really _were_ still children. Yugi decided that if Kaiba wasn’t going to be brave, _he_ would have to be. “Kaiba?”

“What, Yugi?” He sounded defeated, like he had just fought the hardest duel of his life and lost.

“Can I hold your hand?” Yugi didn’t add _“again,”_ even though they _did_ already hold hands once on the day Yugi broke his nose. It took a second for the words to penetrate Kaiba’s fried psyche, but when they did, he held out his hand for Yugi to grab. Yugi grasped it and linked their fingers together similar to how he did last time. “This isn’t so bad, right?”

Kaiba made a strangled noise, covering his face with his other hand. Yugi could see despite the blockage, and what he saw was probably the most flustered he'd ever seen anyone. At least he knew that they were definitely on the same feelings-page. Yugi sighed and leaned against Kaiba, who splayed open two of his fingers to peek through.

"How'd we end up here?" Yugi mused. "You used to hate me, I used to hate you, you tried to kill me…" Yugi counted these off on his fingers, and with each one Kaiba uncovered his face a little more. " _I_ almost killed _you,_ kind of." Yugi dropped his hand heavily onto his chest. "Were you really going to do it?"

"Huh?"

"If I hadn't stopped the other me from beating you outside of Pegasus Castle." Yugi stared at the gray wall of the room. "Would you have jumped?"

Kaiba didn't miss the way Yugi held his hand tighter. For one of the few times in his life, he felt guilty. "I don't want to answer that."

"That means the answer is yes." Yugi slid lower down Kaiba's side, and Kaiba let him. "Well, I'm glad I stopped him." 

Kaiba brought Yugi's trapped hand to his face and just rested his head against it, not really sure how to express himself in a situation like this. Yugi turning a shade of red that could rival a ripe tomato was confirmation that Kaiba got the point across. Kaiba closed his eyes. "I'm sorry."

"...You're sorry?" Yugi scrambled up to sit on his knees, so he could be level with Kaiba. "Why?"

"All the things I put you and your friends through." His vacant hand moved to join his other, cradling Yugi's hand much like not-Kaiba had cradled his round puzzle. "They are unforgivable."

"Kaiba!" Yugi whined, grabbing Kaiba by the cheek and turning his head. "Don't say that. You know I don't hold grudges."

Kaiba snorted. "I've seen the way you still give Haga dirty looks."

"Well- that's different!" Yugi slid his hand down to Kaiba's shoulder. "You're my friend whether you like it or not, and I've long since forgiven you." 

Kaiba didn't retort, and Yugi raised an eyebrow. 

"Kaiba?"

Kaiba's eyes shot up from Yugi's lips. Yugi's eyebrows raised comically, but he didn't pull away. No, he _smirked_ like the mischievous teenager he was, deep down inside. "I saw that."

Kaiba coughed into his fist. "Saw what?"

" _I saaaw thaaaat,_ " Yugi cooed, smushing their warm faces together. "You're so cute, you just hate showing it." 

" _Cute_ ?" Kaiba squawked in offended disbelief. Yugi nodded enthusiastically, and it was then they realized how close they were. Their noses were almost touching, Yugi’s still sporting a supportive bandage. Kaiba could see every detail of Yugi's eyes in spite of the white lump, and was hungrily drinking them in… but Yugi wanted to see _Kaiba's_ too. His brown bangs still hung down on them, giving them an ominous shadow. Yugi wanted to see underneath that for the first time.

"No fair, lemme see yours too." Yugi, with only a little hesitation, pushed Kaiba's bangs back and held them there. When his eyes flew open, Yugi was able to fully appreciate it.

"Yugi-" Kaiba's gaze was full of sudden anxiety, looking every which way, and Yugi made a shushing noise.

"I really like your eyes. Thank you for letting me see them." Yugi went right in for the killing blow, giving Kaiba a quick peck on the lips. "I mean it." 

He released Kaiba so Kaiba could do what he needed to do, which ended up being burying his pink face in his hands and stomping his foot. Yugi could imagine the steam coming out of his ears. "That was an unfair move. You cheated." Kaiba groaned, his stomach feeling like it was doing backflips.

"Oh, did I?" Yugi waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "Guess you need to give me a penalty game, Kaiba." Kaiba sat up to glare at him, but with his messy hair and rosy cheeks, it just made Yugi laugh and clutch at his stomach desperately. "Oh, no, you're gonna kill me! Pick a different penalty!" 

"Yugi."

Yugi stopped laughing, alarmed by Kaiba's deadpan voice. "Y- Yeah?"

Kaiba leaned down, getting in Yugi's face once more. He waited long enough for Yugi to start sweating from nerves, then kissed him on the forehead and pulled back, crossing his arms. "Call me Seto."

Seto smirked, very smugly, as Yugi grabbed a throw pillow and screamed into it, kicking his legs wildly. 

Behind the two on the couch, not-Kaiba and not-Yugi were watching. Not-Yugi had an arm intertwined with not-Kaiba's, and was leaning against his bicep. They still held their strange objects, but they weren't incomplete anymore. Each now held a new piece, not-Yugi's being the blue color of not-Kaiba's puzzle, and not-Kaiba's being the golden color of not-Yugi's puzzle. Not-Kaiba was smiling, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy new year! i was not expecting this to breach 9k

**Author's Note:**

> i am going so hard with this story, you have no idea. it's been in my head for days.  
> i'm splitting it into two chapters just because it's rather long. i'll post the second one by new years probably.
> 
> this fic is named after a mother mother song, but its actually mostly inspired by a totally different one by them-  
> alone and sublime! give it a listen.
> 
> edit: adding my twitter to all my fics so you can follow me [here](https://twitter.com/chaosblast_)


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